Hobgoblin Ree Miniseries
Miniseries authors Sarah A. Hoyt and Kate Paulk Stories # "A Change of Heart" by Sarah A. Hoyt and Kate Paulk in Crossroads and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 3 # "Heart, Home and Hearth" by Sarah A. Hoyt and Kate Paulk in Moving Targets and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 4 # "Defending the Heart" by Kate Paulk in Changing the World, Anthologies, volume 5 # "Matters of the Heart" by Sarah A. Hoyt in Changing the World, Anthologies, volume 5 # "Heart's Choice" by Kate Paulk in Finding the Way and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 6 # "Heart's Own" by Sarah A. Hoyt in Finding the Way and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 6 # "Heart's Peril" by Kate Paulk in Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 7 # "Heart's Place" by Sarah A. Hoyt in Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 7 Miniseries overview The miniseries follows the life of Ree, a changechild who was unwittingly caught in a changecircle and became a hobgoblin, a combination of human, cat and mouse. He meets his partner Jem in the first story. Major characters Ree - a changechild hobgoblin, a combination of human, cat and mouse Jem - Ree's partner, a preteen who was living on the streets Garrad - an old farmer who "adopts" them Lenar - Garrad's son Amelie - their adopted daughter, orphaned by a soldier massacre Meren - their adopted son, an orphaned child of two wild hobgoblins Story summaries (SPOILERS) *"A Change of Heart" by Sarah A. Hoyt and Kate Paulk in Crossroads and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 3 - As a human preteen, Ree's prostitute mother set him up to run away so that he would not have to be sold. Living in abandoned buildings and foraging for food, Ree was just catching a cat (which had a rat) when he was touched by a mage storm. His body changed into a hobgoblin, growing a tail, fur all over his body, and changing his features. Ree's life took a turn when he stumbled across a man abusing another boy. Ree's animal instincts took over, and the man died. Ree took the boy Jem back to his hiding place, but Jem became too ill to be left alone. The city guard got more focused on wiping out the unnatural hobgoblins, and troops guarded the city's gates. Ree knew he would limit Jem's ability to forage and survive, and decided to leave the city alone, thinking Jem would be better off without him. Instead, Jem followed him, and they escaped the city together. *"Heart, Home and Hearth" by Sarah A. Hoyt and Kate Paulk in Moving Targets and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 4 - After a cold winter in open fields, Jem was ill and Ree was desperate. He went up to a farm that seemed abandoned, and found a cranky old man who had fallen. Garrad was suspicious of Ree, but necessity forced him to accept Ree's help. He taught Ree to take care of the farm. Jem looked a lot like Garrad's son Lenar, and started calling him Granddad. *"Defending the Heart" by Kate Paulk in Changing the World, Anthologies, volume 5 - Several years later, a troop of soldiers arrived and burned the village. They took some villagers away, along with Jem. Ree staged a rescued for them all. Ree and Jem adopted an orphaned village girl, Amelie. *"Matters of the Heart" by Sarah A. Hoyt in Changing the World, Anthologies, volume 5 - To everyone's surprise, Garrad's son Lenar returned, having retired from his military career with a lot of money. He viewed Ree as a dangerous hobgoblin. But they all noticed the strong resemblance between Granddad, Lenar and Jem. They compared information and realized Jem's mother had been Lenar's lover before he was called away to war. *"Heart's Choice" by Kate Paulk in Finding the Way and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 6 - A few years later, a pair of cat-rat hobgoblins that look like Ree are killed after they kill a cow and a villager. Everyone hunts for their infant, which Jem insists on adopting, naming him Meren. *"Heart's Own" by Sarah A. Hoyt in Finding the Way and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 6 - When toddler Meren got attacked by mean village boys, he still did not talk. Anxiety grew that he was more animal than human. Things came to a head when Meren seemed to attack Amelie, but actually he saved her from a dire wolf. After he was healed, he spoke his first words. *"Heart's Peril" by Kate Paulk in Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 7 - Lenar has a small son, Garrad, who comes to the farm to play with Meren. One evening the two were missing from their beds. Ree, Jem and Lenar followed a flood of yowling barn cats out to the woods, where they swarmed the snow bears about to attack the boys. Later, Meren admitted that the cats told him where to find little Garrad. *"Heart's Place" by Sarah A. Hoyt in Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar, Anthologies, volume 7 - A Mage examines Meren and explains that animal mindspeech is his Gift, not an inhuman heritage. Granddad Garrad makes out his will, leaving the farm to Ree and Meren, knowing that in the eyes of the law they are not human. He tells Lenar to figure out how to make it work. Lenar has the Mage examine Ree and then declares him a citizen of the Empire. Category:Miniseries Category:Short works